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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.

Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.

Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.

Shareholder Breakdown

The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.

An official representative said: "We are providing no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."

Valuation Increase

This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.

The rise reflects the growth in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.

This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.

The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports film to date.

Present Performance

Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.

Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

The team won a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.